University will connect with a list of prospective donors for stadium

Oct. 4, 2012

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Next steps

• The CSU System Board of Governors has said Frank and campus leaders must raise more than half the on-campus stadium’s proposed $246 million cost in the next two years. By the two-year mark, Frank will make a recommendation to the board on whether to move forward with construction. • “Not a single dollar” has been given to fund the stadium’s construction prior to this point, CSU Athletics Director Jack Graham said. But he, Vice President of Advancement Brett Anderson and others will now call down a list of potential, “viable” donors. • Frank will update the Board of Governors on the progress of fundraising.

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About half an hour after the university’s governing board told CSU President Tony Frank to go forward with next steps toward an on-campus football stadium, Athletics Director Jack Graham was ready to get to work.

Having just wrapped up a press conference where he described his reaction to the board’s approval as “very fulfilling,” Graham made for the door. A bag slung over his shoulder and surrounded by colleagues, he said, “Let’s go make some phone calls.”

Immediately following Frank’s Monday announcement that CSU should move forward with the on-campus stadium, donors started calling in to give money to the project. But Vice President of Advancement Brett Anderson couldn’t take a single dollar until the Board of Governors approved — unanimously, as it turned out — Frank’s recommendation.

That has all changed, as Anderson can now partner with Graham to find people willing to help CSU raise more than half the stadium’s estimated $246 million cost over the next two years.

Is it a daunting task?

“Absolutely,” Graham told a group of reporters Thursday afternoon.

“I think there’s six zeroes after 125,” he said of the board’s charge and Frank’s goal to raise $125 million or more before deciding whether to put shovels to soil and erect the 43,000-seat facility.

But Graham said he and Anderson share a confidence that’s “very, very high.”

“Not a single dollar” has been given to fund the stadium’s construction prior to this point, Graham said. But there’s a list of prospective donors CSU believes are “viable,” people with whom the university will now connect, Anderson said.

When asked whether the university took a hit when local billionaire and longtime CSU donor Pat Stryker earlier this week issued a statement saying she had “not committed” to funding the stadium, Graham said she has been nothing less than a “phenomenal supporter” who “gets to make her own choices.”

“One person isn’t going to fund this stadium,” Graham said, adding that it will take people giving at all levels, whether that be $25; $25,000; or $2.5 million.

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“Every dollar counts,” he said.

Seven years ago, CSU embarked on a mission to raise $500 million in the university’s first-ever capital campaign. Some said CSU set the bar too high, that $250 million or $300 million were more achievable marks, Anderson said.

Then, in July, the university announced the campaign’s conclusion, which brought with it a record-breaking $537 million during tumultuous economic times, Anderson said.

Among the most pressing concerns for Bob Vangermeersch, leader of the opponent group Save Our Stadium Hughes, is how CSU will define “philanthropic gifts.” If gifts are not given in cash form but pledges, he said, it could mean taxpayers pay services on potential debt incurred.

Some have questioned whether and how many donors will donate to fund the stadium, whether there could be “fatigue” among boosters and others who have previously donated or if donating to athletics means less giving to academics.

Anderson doesn’t see the on-campus stadium as a donations “detractor,” however.

Someone may call in to donate to athletics, he said. But if brought onto campus and shown the “great” faculty, academic programs and students, they often reach into their pockets and give even more, he said.